| Uganda Muslim Liberation Army | |
|---|---|
| Dates of operation | 1995–1996 |
| Headquarters | Buganda |
| Active regions | Sudan–Uganda border, Uganda–Zaire border |
| Ideology | Muslim interests in Buganda |
| Allies |  |
| Opponents |  |
The Uganda Muslim Liberation Army (abbreviated UMLA) was a Muslim rebel group in Uganda. Most of its fighters were from the Muslim minority of Baganda, whilst others were non-Baganda Muslims. [1] The group was formed in response to the Museveni government's alleged mistreatment of Muslims in Buganda. [2]
The UMLA formally declared war on Yoweri Museveni's Ugandan government in January 1995. [3] In February 1995, the group launched its first military operations near Lake Albert, which failed and resulted in their retreat to Zaire (present-day the Democratic Republic of Congo). [1]
Museveni denounced the rebels as Islamic fundamentalists, whose sole purpose was to destabilize the Great Lakes Region as "agents of [Sudan's] NIF government". The self-proclaimed purpose of the UMLA was to topple Museveni's government and stop the alleged mistreatment of Muslims in Buganda by them. [2] The UMLA claimed that Museveni's National Resistance Army (NRA) had committed war crimes and massacres against Muslims during the Ugandan Bush War, a claim which Museveni denies. [3]
The UMLA merged with the Allied Democratic Movement, remnants of the National Army for the Liberation of Uganda (NALU) and followers of the Islamic sect Tablighi Jamaat to form the Allied Democratic Forces in 1996, allegedly with the assistance of the Sudanese government. [4] Despite not waging a significant insurgency, the group was a primary focus of bitter relations between the Sudanese and Ugandan governments. [2]
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The Ugandan Bush War, also known as the Luwero War, the Ugandan Civil War or the Resistance War, was a civil war fought in Uganda by the official Ugandan government and its armed wing, the Uganda National Liberation Army (UNLA), against a number of rebel groups, most importantly the National Resistance Army (NRA), from 1980 to 1986.
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The Lord's Resistance Army (LRA), also known as the Lord's Resistance Movement, is a rebel group and heterodox Christian group which operates in northern Uganda, South Sudan, the Central African Republic, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Originally known as the United Holy Salvation Army and Uganda Christian Army/Movement, its stated goals include establishment of multi-party democracy, ruling Uganda according to the Ten Commandments, and Acholi nationalism.
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